Skydio 2 Crash in the first 20 minutes!

Took my new Skydio 2 drone out on a bike ride with my son and it crashed within the first 15 minutes! So bummed. Have been looking forward to this amazing drone for months and then this.

First almost-crash is at 14:00 minutes, then goes down hard shortly after that.

Really hoping that Skydio will honor a warranty claim.

UPDATE: August 2020
Skydio denied my warranty claim. They claimed I should not be flying above a public street as that is against FAA regulations and that the line the drone hit may have been bigger than .5 inches (I measured it and proved this) but said this line was "around .5 inches" so not acceptable. No warranty claim allowed. This drone is, therefore, for the "great, open outdoors" and where there are no twigs or things around .5 inches or smaller. That makes flying this drone VERY limiting.

I originally got this drone for mountain biking with my family, long boarding with my family, bike rides with my family, etc. Generally this is around areas where there will be twigs and small branches as there are trees in these areas.

The videos I see Skydio advertising show it flying around trees and such, but hitting a twig can upset the drone (which goes very fast at times and can easily rip off the magnetic battery). Without the prop guards that the Skydio 1 had, and the battery not being a "snap in" and is instead a magnetic hold, this drone just got far less attractive to me.

I'm now seeing more and more videos of similar crashes.

Too bad. Really had high hopes. Hope this helps others.

[NLD]

Thanks Dan for sharing this experience. Many people could learn from this mistake and help on the purchasing decision.

[xavier_arthur]

Dam Powerlines 😥
Connect the Drone to beacon first, then connect the phone to the beacon & it should come to the beacon when it looses you!
For best results beacon should be exposed, as opposed to in your pocket.
I hope your second unit works better.
Happy Flying 🙂

[KingKola]

Question, so how much did you end up paying to fix it? I recently crashed mine the same way.

[edgarces]

I feel your pain but I predict that sometime in the future your son and you will have a good laugh when you watch this again. It’s now part of those memorable and “priceless”family moments you will cherish. This clip is also very well done and shows your experience with capturing memories . Mine was more embarrassing with my Mavic pro. I was showing my neighbor how great drones are and the Mavic battery separated from the drone at 30ft up and crashed! Waiting for my Skydio 2 right now and it’s just killing me! I’m an avid mountain biker and now a crazy Onewheeler. I just celebrated my 76 birthday two weeks ago🤣 The next 45 days will feel like forever! Thanks for sharing

[RXZ]

Note to self, avoid areas with electric wires, cables etc. So far that's the number one killer of Skydio 2 I've seen in YouTube. That's why even when I had the Skydio 2 delivered, I didn't fly the thing after a week. I wanted to make sure I learn from others mistakes. I think with some speed, low light the Skydio isn't fast enough to avoid electrical wires. I've had issues with tracking using beacon and after some time with it, hand launching forward and having Skydio 2 turn around and lock on you seems more reliable. If I watch videos where users launch from the case or ground it seems Skydio most often looses lock on the subject and beacon.

[bbogeaus]

hi Dan, at 11:38 I think the reason it didn't "drop down" was because you had the 8-foot minimun hight (the safty floor) enabled?

[DJ-Miami]

With all the wires thick and thin all over the place it's no surprise to me that it crashed. I would have guessed much earlier though. You realize that you could have caused a short/fire? Who flies around power lines??

[johndempsey]

I'm getting my soon and this video definitely helps reenforce with being smart with navigating thin objects. Thanks!

[jeraldfranklinbrown]

Dude I’m sorry I feel your pain. I’m waiting for mine now and the only thing I can see on your situation is that maybe it was a little too cloudy but again I don’t have one yet I bought the Autel Evo. I enjoyed your video with your son. I hope they send you a new one like tomorrow even though your case tomorrow has passed good luck.

[Dannyar]

How did the warranty claim go with skydio? Did they honor it as a malfunction of the drone and replace it free of charge?

[InspireFPV]

The guidelines clearly state that powelines and public roads are a no-no. Thin wires yield no other context for obstacle avoidance, but even thin branches are attached to trees and their trunks, so it can evaluate the tree as a whole and avoid it more accurately than a random powerline

[eyeintheskydroneservices]

Dan, Thanks for the info & video. I have been hotdogging around with mine with no incidents so far, but now seeing this, I will be a little more vigilant in future flights. Thanks again.

[cbcam]

Your professionalism, humility, and candor are top-notch Dan. An unfortunate lesson learned the hard way. Thank you for helping some of us still waiting to be better prepared for the real-world limitations and consequences.

[cyclinggospel]

First crash, there was very thin tree branch hanging behind the drone, that's why drone was stuck all around it, and didn't move I think. Amazing action video drone! I have just lost DJI mavic air from it's "return home" malfunction yesterday. I am not going to buy another DJI mavic air. I was never able to shoot action video with it alone. Skydio seems to be miles ahead of DJI mavic. It will be my next drone! Thanks for video.

[Colazsmithtv]

Its been 3 months...did u get a replacement ? Nice video btw

[ThaBlackCobra]

So sorry this happened to you. The same thing happened to me (Hit a thin powerline) but I guess I was lucky because mine landed in a bush and only suffered some scratches. I am an Electric unicycle rider and content creator. I have only flown it twice and now I will be more cautious when flying it through the inner city and urban environment. I am really surprised that they did not cover your claim. Thank you for sharing though it was very helpful

[indianagrenoble]

An french Friend's buy a Skydio 2, crash it with a small branch in last winter, and Skydio compagny says no waranty cause it's fly and crashed in France...

[hellomihai]

Didn’t drop down because of the floor height restriction to 8 feet? Yeah it’s amazing but avoid any thin objects. Lines or mesh fences. Also moving cars could hit it

[yanyang]

Hey Dan nice video, any update from Skydio yet? Did they honor the warranty ?

[TorqueDorque]

haha, riding that bmx bike with your son tells me you are a Gen X-er - miss that world even without the technology. Thanks for sharing. I just received mine and this is the second video I have seen where a power line caused the crash. Ken Heron (drone enthusiast and a funny dude) went through the warranty process like you. I know you replaced it by now but you may want to check it out. Good to discover your channel through this one. Thanks again Dan